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U.S. Study Documents Increase in Violent Crimes on Campuses

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A federal study undertaken in the wake of the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech examines the history and extent of violence directed at college campuses. "Campus Attacks: Targeted Violence Affecting Institutions of Higher Education," by the Education Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service, analyzes 272 violent incidents from 1909 through 2008, finding that 75 percent of them have happened since 1980 (roughly in proportion to enrollment increases in higher education, though with an apparent proportional uptick in the 1990s and 2000s). Attacks were nearly as likely to occur in administrative and academic buildings and on general campus grounds as in residence halls, and the overwhelming majority of the incidents were carried out by men.